Holidays? There are only two types of days here in this prison. Mail days and non-mail days.

Mail days are usually Monday through Friday. Non-mail days are Saturday, Sunday, and New York State holidays.

There have been one or two days in the past year when we had a non-mail day schedule on a mail day. Having now completed a full year here, I can say it is really easy to simply ignore 'holidays.'

I did spend most of Christmas Eve and Day listening to the radio, and between the classical and Christian stations, I heard more of Handel's Messiah then even I could stand.

From 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Saturday, Christmas Eve, I listened to a live broadcast of Prairie Home Companion broadcast from Town Hall in New York City. One of the guests on the show was Odetta, a seventy-five year old woman who can still sing the blues. She sang "Mary Had a Baby" and "This Little Light of Mine." The show closed with everyone singing Silent Night.

I lay back on my bunk and closed my eyes, and transported myself to be with them in New York City.  ¶ 8:15 PM